LAKERS NOTEBOOK: ODOM SHINES, STRUGGLES IN CHRISTMAS SPOTLIGHT.

Byline: Ross Siler Staff Writer

As he pulled on his socks in the Lakers locker room before Saturday's game, Lamar Odom said to the small group of reporters gathered, ``I feel like I've arrived in the NBA playing on Christmas Day.''

Odom matched his season-high with 24 points and 11 rebounds in the Lakers' 104-102 overtime loss to the Miami Heat but it was another game of extreme swings for the sixth-year forward.

He hit one more 3-pointer Saturday (four) than he had the rest of December combined and scored all eight of the Lakers' points in overtime, single-handedly leading them back from a 104-99 deficit.

But Odom was so frustrated by calls going against him that he drew a technical foul in the second quarter for spiking the ball after a basket and later ran the length of the court to hang on the rim after picking up his fourth foul with 1:42 left in regulation.

At the end of the fourth quarter, Odom made only 1 of 2 free throws with a chance to put the Lakers in front and also hesitated on a long 3-pointer in the final minute, resulting in a shot-clock violation.

Then in overtime he knocked down two 3-pointers and scored off a drive. Odom was asked afterward if he should have taken the game-deciding 3-pointer that went to Bryant, who finished 0 for 3 in overtime.

``It's not all about that,'' Odom said. ``It's not all about that. It's not all about that.''

Bryant took twice as many shots as Odom, yet ended up with only three more made baskets. Odom was 9 of 15 from the field.

--Last shot: Through 26 games, Bryant now has missed four potential game-winning or game-tying shots in the closing seconds this season, a marked departure from the past.

--Closing comments: Bryant and O'Neal headed their separate ways after Saturday's game and the ill feelings between the two seem unlikely to end any time soon. Bryant was asked if he would call O'Neal between now and their March 17 game in Miami.

His answer: ``Maybe I will, I don't know.''

--High ratings: Shaq vs. Kobe drew the highest rating in six years for a regular-season NBA game. The overnight rating of 8.0 was the highest since February 1998, when Michael Jordan led the Chicago Bulls against the Lakers on NBC.

- Associated Press contributed to this story.

Ross Siler, [phone]

ross.siler(at)dailynews.com